ASB 0707 CARRIAGE SHOW Trainers and volunteers line up beside the children on their horses during the Celtic Charms Therapeutic Horsemanship center in Howell, first horse show for 2014, Sunday, July 6, 2014. Photographer/Mary Frank Gannett/Mary Frank

ASB 0707 CARRIAGE SHOW Stefany Itara, 10, of Howell, rides Enya, a 22-year-old grande dame horse during the Celtic Charms Therapeutic Horsemanship center in Howell, first horse show for 2014, Sunday, July 6, 2014. Left is volunteer Sarah Lerner, 17, of Howell, and right is Sarah Pennington, 10, of Marlboro. Back right is instructor, Lisa Russo. Photographer/Mary Frank Gannett/Mary Frank

HOWELL – Ten-year-old Stefani Itara of Howell could not see the white mare she rode Sunday, but she could feel the horse's movements below her.

Stefani, who is blind and has cognitive delays, competed that morning with about a dozen other children with various physical, developmental or emotional disabilities in a horse show at Celtic Charms Therapeutic Horsemanship center, where they were judged on guiding and controlling their mounts through low obstacle courses.

Stefani was born prematurely at 25 weeks gestation, weighing only 1 pound, said her father Arnie Itara. Other horse centers refused to teach the girl to ride because she was blind, Itara said. But Celtic Charms was the exception, and there Stefani has ridden for more than 5 years, he said.

"All we want is to bring her to her highest potential," Itara said. "Children are nothing but innocent, so we do the best we can to the best of our ability."

Celtic Charms is a nonprofit organization that helps children and adults with various disabilities, said program director Christine Landuyt. Some of her adult students have suffered severe strokes. Her younger students have emotional disabilities, physical challenges, or cognitive delays.

Through riding, the students learn better posture, strengthen core muscles, and receive sensory input that helps with balance and movement, she said.

"It's not about the disability," Landuyt said. "There's no pity stuff here."

Students learn to care for horses through grooming and tacking up their mounts. For some students who may have a difficult time navigating the social rules of the human world, the horses can provide a way to connect and express compassion, Landuyt said.

Three years ago, Allie Burton was terrified to mount a horse, but the Brick 10-year-old — who has Down syndrome and autism — has begun to love horseback riding, said her mother Sherry Burton.

She competed in the same ring as 5-year-old twins Isabella and Colton Vena of Marlboro. The twins had a difficult time adjusting to their parents' divorce before they began riding lessons, their mother Natalie Vena said. After months of riding, their attitudes have changed, she said.

Each child on horseback walked their animal around the ring and an outdoor course with the help of at least one volunteer. The Howell farm only accepts riders through its therapeutic program, and operates through volunteers, sponsorships and donations.

"There's not many opportunities at typical barns for these students," said Landuyt. But here, "we're constantly challenging them... They are now in charge of this beautiful horse and it gives them a sense of accomplishment."

Amanda Oglesby: 732-557-5701; aoglesby@app.com

How to help: To support the Celtic Charms Therapeutic Horsemanship program, visit www.celticcharms.org or call 732-987-5333.